Are there any good reasons to change the size of my Raptor tires? Stock is 20" and a buddy says go with a 22". I also am thinking of going with a set of Bandits XC's. I do trail riding in FL with sugar sand and clay. Any experienced opinions would help a bunch.

 

For aggressive trail riding, you don't want to go any bigger than 20" rear tires. You will begin to lose the ability to control the rear end as you go larger. Many people actually prefer 18" rear tires for the ultimate in manueverability. I have 20" Bandit XC rears on my LT500 and I like the great traction (deep lugs) they provide. However, they are fairly heavy. I have them mounted on 10" rims which reduces the amount of tire weight but even then they are heavier than most sport tires. A tire like Holeshot is lighter and better for mx type riding but they won't provide the kind of straight line and mud traction than my Bandits do. If you are more into rough trail, mud, and hill climbing then get the 22" tires. Most Raptor owners would probably find this swap to be a mistake though.

 

I disagree with btodd. I had 20" Bandit XC's on my banshee for over a year. They have a little better traction that the stockers but not much. Then I went to the badlands which is mostly sand and tried out my dad's 22" holeshot XCT's. They worked great. I've got my own 22" holeshots now. The hook up A LOT better than the bandits in all conditions. I did drop a tooth on the front and one (I think) on the back to compensate for the larger diameter tire and make it closer to stock gearing. I hardly ever get stuck anymore. The holeshot is softer and will wear out quicker though. The bandit tread is hard as a rock and will last a long time (unless your doing burn outs on pavement).

 

I have 22" holeshot xct's on my warrior and love them. I get great traction and havent gotten stuck anywhere since I put them on. 22" tires will give you more ground clearance than the original 20" tires. The back end will be 1" higher than stock. If you do woods riding, go with 22" tires, if you ride on motocross tracks and places where ground clearance isn't an issue, go with 20" tires.

 

I have to say to go with the 22" tires for trail riding because of the higher ground clearance. Go with the 20" if you have no ground clearance problems. If all you're doing is riding in the sand, your ground clearance should be fine and going with the 20" tires will give you less unsprung weight resulting in faster acceleration. Have you considered a set of sand paddles for the rear just for the sand? That will get all that horsepower to the ground!!! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Thanks for the scoop guys. Looks like the tire size is something that is individually preferred. I'm gonna go with the 20" bandits and see how they work. I see alot of people who like the holeshots and I'll probably try a pair of 21" or 22" in a month or two and see what I like best.